


By his mercy

by RecliningHorizontally



Category: Outer Banks (TV)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:53:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24703357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RecliningHorizontally/pseuds/RecliningHorizontally
Summary: Just when JJ thinks things can't get any worse, life proves him wrong. Barry kidnaps JJ, still on the hunt for his money, and takes his rage out on our favorite, blond Pogue. Can JJ keep fighting or will he finally give up? Will Pope and Kie be able to save him in time?
Comments: 15
Kudos: 55





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Picks up after the season 1 finale which means spoilers up until that point. Graphic canon-typical violence and language. Have fun reading :)

When he grabbed the 25K from Barry's trailer he had no idea that his actions would end up almost getting him killed. And he had no way of knowing that stealing the money would become the catalyst that brought most of the Pogues back together again… It would take a lot of pain and hurt to get there, but, in the end, everything would work out for the best. Because it had to!

JJ felt his chest ache as he thought of his best friend. John B. and Sarah had been missing for four days now, and there were still no signs of them showing up anywhere. But they weren't dead. They were not! They couldn't be. JJ would never forgive himself if getting the Phantom for John B. was the thing that got his friends killed.

He wiped a hand across his eyes when the thoughts became too much, and JJ swallowed hard as he plopped down on the makeshift bed in Pope's room. Luke had never shown up at the tent that night, and JJ had no intention of going back to the house if he could avoid it in any way. To JJ's great surprise, Mr. and Mrs. Hayward had just brought him home with Pope as it was the most natural thing in the world. For that, JJ would be forever grateful, and he tried his best to follow the few rules in the house. One of them was proving difficult to live up to, though. No weed!  
It was actually getting caught doing just that, that had prompted Hayward to introduce JJ to his demands on the first night. The big man had had a serious expression on his face when he had talked to JJ rather sternly about the handful of rules, and had looked meaningfully at the teen when the zero ganja-rule had been mentioned. Illegal substances were an absolute no go in the house, and Pope had talked to JJ afterwards, trying his best to make his friend understand that that particular rule needed to be followed at all times or he would be grounded for the rest of his teen years. JJ had promised. Sworn even. The thought of having to go back to his dad was a pretty terrifying thought, and he would try his hardest to avoid that man for as long as possible. Even if it meant staying off the sticky green!

His resolve had lasted so far, but the thoughts were growing darker and darker in JJ's head, and he felt jittery and annoyed. An image of John B. clawing at the sides of the Phantom as he tried to save himself and Sarah from drowning suddenly appeared in JJ's head, and, no matter how much he tried, he couldn't will it to go away. He felt tears gather in his eyes, and JJ swallowed against the lump that was growing in his throat. Fuck this! JJ thumped his head back against the wall a few times, but stopped when Pope walked in.  
"What're you doing?"  
The blond wiped a hand across his eyes before looking at his friend.  
"Going crazy being cooped up in here," JJ stated tiredly and scratched his bare knee.  
Pope didn't really know what to say to that and just bit his lip. After a short while, an idea popped into his head.  
"Wanna take the HMS Pogue out for a ride?"  
JJ shrugged, but rose to his feet anyway. Getting outside for a bit might do him some good.  
"Be back for dinner at 7, boys," Mrs. Hayward yelled at them as they exited the house.  
"We will, mom," Pope responded in a loud voice before shutting the door behind them.

JJ was unusually quiet as Pope was driving the small boat. He shielded his eyes from the sun and looked out over the marshlands. Out of nowhere, all the memories came rushing back, and that deep, bottomless sadness he fought so hard to keep at bay threatened to take over completely. He lifted the bottle and looked at Pope.  
"Skål!" he said, before emptying the bottle in one long sip.  
"Cheers," Pope nodded and took a swig of his own beer.

"Do you think they made it to shore somehow?" Pope asked quietly a little while later.  
They had anchored the Pogue and were both halfway through their second beer. JJ sighed in tune with a shrug.  
"I dunno," he offered then and ripped the label off the bottle, "honestly, I think they'd have called us by now then, wouldn't they?"  
Pope felt like JJ had just punched him. He had thought of that himself, but hearing someone else say it made it all feel too real. His lower lip quivered a little, and Pope took off his cap and twirled it in his hands.  
"Fuck," he ground out in a low voice and wiped the falling tears away.  
JJ swallowed hard and sent Pope a quick glance. Why did everything he got involved with always turn to shit!  
"It's my fault," JJ muttered under his breath.  
His eyes glistened, and he balled up his fists, wishing there had been something on the boat he could hit repeatedly.  
"Dude," Pope spat, sounding almost angry, "shut up!"  
"What, it's true, Pope… I'm the one who got them the Phantom."  
"And I'm the one who suggested that to you, remember?"  
JJ swallowed and ran a hand through his hair. Now that he thought about it, Pope was actually the one who came up with the idea. He was still the one to get the boat, though.  
"It's both our faults then," JJ huffed and stood up.  
With an almost deafening growl, he threw his empty bottle as far as he could. It landed with a small splash, and JJ took a deep breath.  
"Fuck this shit!" he screamed as loudly as he could, making Pope flinch in his spot.  
"JJ," he tried and grabbed his friend by the arm.  
The blond freed himself from Pope's grip and plopped down on the seat.  
"It's not our fault," Pope said gently, ever the voice of reason.  
"Yes, it is, Pope. It is our fault, and if you can't see that then…"  
"Then what?" Pope asked, getting annoyed.  
JJ had a habit of always taking the blame for everything. It had always been like that, and though it was one of the beautiful things about JJ, at the same time, it was also a stupid, self-destructive mechanism. Pope was certain that it was a result of Luke's abuse, drilling into JJ from childhood that he had no real worth and that he deserved to be used as a whipping boy.  
"John B. chose to go into that storm. He decided to do that. Not you. Or me…"  
JJ shook his head and gritted his teeth at Pope's words.  
"Whatever, man, you just keep telling yourself that…"

Pope clenched his jaw and felt like slapping some sense into his friend. Instead, he turned around and looked out over the water. More than anything, he wished that John B. and Sarah were alive and safe. But he was afraid they weren't. And the sadness and grief were more than enough for him to deal with. He didn't need JJ's guilty conscience on top of that, and Pope wasn't sure he had the energy to pull the both of them through this. At least not without JJ being willing to quit his guilt trip.  
When Pope turned around, JJ was twirling a blunt between his fingers.  
"Where the hell did you get that?"  
Pope raised a brow.  
"What does it matter?" JJ shot and lit the joint.  
"You're not supposed to smoke, JJ! It's like the number one house rule. And my dad already caught you once!"  
"Your dad's not here. And we're not in the house."  
"But-"  
"Pope! Shut up, okay. I need this…"  
Pope shook his head and crossed his arms. JJ blew out a cloud of thick smoke, and Pope sighed before sitting down next to his friend. Seeing how the weed visibly made JJ less tense made Pope consider whether or not he should ask for a hit. Before he could even open his mouth, JJ held out the blunt, sending him a small, sad smile. Pope thought of the 400 million. Of how he had blown his interview. Of how Kie's parents wouldn't let her see neither him nor JJ. And of how the hell they were ever going to get through junior year without John B. at their side.  
Pope accepted the joint and inhaled deeply. He still hadn't quite figured out how to take a hit without the smoke burning and itching in his throat, and the boy immediately started coughing. JJ handed him a new beer with a smile, and luckily the cold liquid suppressed the wheezing.  
"Dude," JJ said slowly, "draw in some air as well when you inhale. That'll help. I promise."  
The coughing fit felt like it had pushed the THC right into Pope's brain, and the high had hit him instantly. It felt like a buzzing spot on his forehead and a jittery tingling in his legs; sort of like being drunk, but at the same time not at all.

With their senses dulled, the two boys quickly lost track of time, and it wasn't until Pope's phone suddenly started ringing that they realized that 7 o'clock dinner was most definitely not going to happen seeing as it was now quarter to 8.  
"Shit," Pope exclaimed when he saw who was calling, "it's my mom…"  
JJ raised his brows and sent his friend a look. Pope lifted the phone to his ear.  
"Uh, hi mom," he started and squinted his eyes a bit.  
By Pope's expression, JJ guessed that Mrs. Hayward wasn't exactly pleased on the other end of the line, and he chewed on his lip.  
"I'm sorry, mom," Pope said and swallowed, "we were just-"  
JJ eyed his feet, almost feeling the scolding through the phone.  
"Yes. No, I promise. Yes, ma'am."  
Pope ended the call and looked at JJ.  
"We're so screwed!"


	2. Chapter 2

Pope gritted his teeth and then gently opened the front door. JJ followed, hands in his pockets and a guilty feeling spreading in his gut. As soon as the door closed behind them, Mr. and Mrs. Hayward sent the teens disapproving looks. They both crossed their arms, and Hayward shook his head slightly.  
"I am so disappointed in you boys!"  
"Sorry, dad," Pope said quietly and looked down, "we just lost track of time."  
Mrs. Hayward took a few steps forward.  
"Well, the most important thing is that you're safe. And you're home now. Dinner's waiti-"  
She stopped mid-sentence a few feet in front of them. JJ bit his lip as the woman squinted her eyes.  
"What is that smell?" she asked curtly and raised her brows.  
With her hands on her hips, the woman in front of them looked slightly terrifying, and though it was usually Hayward who was in charge of discipline in the house, Pope looked at his mom warily. She took another step forward, invading her son's private space, and sniffed the air around him. Behind her, Hayward was moving towards them as well, his hands clenched into fists and a grave expression plastered on his face.  
"Is that marijuana?" Mrs. Hayward demanded to know, already sounding angry, and Pope and JJ threw each other a quick, sideways glance.  
"…Pope didn't smoke any," JJ said then, once again trying to take all the blame.  
"Quiet, JJ," Mrs. Hayward huffed sternly, "let him speak for himself."  
JJ eyed the floor, and Pope felt his heart hammer in his chest. He swallowed hard and then looked up at his parents.  
"We both smoked," he admitted.  
Reacting on pure instinct, his mother raised her hand, and Pope couldn't help the tears that formed in his eyes as the slap hit him. Next to him, JJ flinched and took a tiny step backwards. Pope looked up in shock, and his mom sent him a quick, apologetic glance.  
"I'm sorry, honey," she said with a shaky voice, "I-I didn't mean to."  
"Don't apologize to him," Hayward shot, clearly disappointed, "he had it comin'!"  
Pope clenched his jaw and didn't know what to do.  
"JJ," Hayward ordered and pointed towards the master bedroom.

With his head bent, JJ followed Hayward. His insides were in turmoil, fear spreading in his gut. Logically, he knew that Hayward would never do to him what his own dad did, but he had been through something like this so many times that his brain couldn't convince his body that it wasn't in for a beating.  
"I'm really sorry, Mr. H," JJ said almost inaudibly as soon as the man closed the door behind him.  
"I know, JJ," Hayward answered seriously and sighed deeply.  
The big man motioned for the teen to take a seat, and JJ nervously sat down on the edge of the bed. Hayward drew in a heavy breath and looked at the boy in front of him. The combination of his unruly mop of blond hair, the collection of bruises and the worn cargo shorts made him look like a street thug, Hayward supposed. But he knew that this kid had a heart big enough for all of Kildare. That he was fiercely loyal and had probably taken the fall for all of his friends more times than he could count. And that just made the words he was going to say even harder. But right now, Pope had to be his number one concern. If Luke had been dead it would have been different. Then the Haywards would have taken JJ in permanently, no doubt about it. And smoking again after being told not to would have gotten him grounded for the rest of the summer on top of an epic telling-off. But Luke was still around. He was still JJ's father.  
"JJ," Hayward started and scratched his head, "you broke the rule, son. Why?"  
The fact that Hayward had called him son almost made JJ cry. He drew in a somewhat shaky breath and shrugged. He couldn't bear to look at the man and so just eyed the floor instead.  
"Eyes up, JJ. Why did you smoke the weed? You knew it would get you in trouble."  
JJ raised his gaze and looked into Hayward's disappointed eyes.  
"I…" he started and curled his toes inside his boots.  
He felt so ashamed. Hayward had taken him in. Offered him a place to crash, food to eat. And this was how he repaid the man! By breaking the rules and dragging his son down with him. He was such a fucking screw-up!  
"Sorry," JJ said again.  
Hayward squinted slightly and crossed his arms.  
"Sorry doesn't cut it, JJ. I want an explanation."  
The boy nodded and tried again.  
"I just really- I needed to, you know. And don't be mad at Pope, it was me who offered him some. He's a good kid…"  
Hayward felt himself getting agitated.  
"No, I don't know, JJ. I don't. You're 16 years old, you don't need to smoke marijuana! Especially not when you had been told not to, when you knew this would happen. It would have been one thing if you had smoked alone, but now Pope has tried this shit as well! And that's where I draw the line, JJ. I can't have that crap around Pope. Not now. You boys are going through hell, I know that, but you cannot drag Pope into this kind of behavior, son. I won't allow that."  
JJ's cheeks turned red, and he felt as if Hayward had slapped him. His eyes glistened with tears as he looked at the man again.  
"I'm sorry," JJ said for the third time.  
"I'm gonna have to ask you to find another place to stay right now, JJ," Hayward ground out, his heart breaking for the kid on the bed.  
JJ sucked in a breath. A single tear rolled down, and he angrily wiped it off his cheek.  
"Yes, sir," he said, feeling absolutely lost and alone.  
JJ got off the bed and Hayward extended a hand, placing it on the teen's shoulder.  
"JJ, I… I know that you're a good friend to Pope, and you'll be welcome here again. But right now, I don't think you and Pope are good for each other. You need to give him some space. If you need help with your dad don't hesitate to call me, okay. I'll help you how I can, but you can't stay here, JJ. Not when you break the rules this blatantly."  
The blond nodded and swallowed hard.  
"I'll just pack up my stuff," JJ said in a small voice, and Hayward nodded.  
"You do that."

Pope sent his dad and JJ a worried look when they entered the living room again, but JJ couldn't meet his friend's eyes. He stalked to Pope's room and started collecting his things into his old backpack. Then Pope's loud voice reached his ears.  
"WHAT? Dad, you can't do that!"  
Hayward's response was lower, and JJ couldn't hear all he said, but towards the end his voice rose in volume.  
"-and you can consider yourself grounded for the next three weeks, son. If your ass leaves this house for anything other than work or chores, so help me God…!"  
JJ cleared his throat, feeling extremely awkward, and then opened the door. After all, he couldn't hide in Pope's room forever.

The air was humid, and the cicadas chirped loudly. JJ sighed to himself. It was almost impressive how royally he could fuck up everything! JJ spat on the ground and started walking. He could almost hear his dad's voice in his head, "You worthless piece of shit!" Going home was not an option yet. He didn't doubt for a second that Luke would deliver a solid ass-kicking once he finally got his hands on him. A cracked rib, a black eye and a myriad of belt lashes were to be expected. He had stolen his boat after all! But that was a worry for another night.

Without thinking about it all that much, JJ suddenly found himself at Kie's. Her parents had forbidden her from seeing him and Pope after what had happened, and JJ knew she was grounded at the moment. After making sure no one could see him, he entered the garden and quickly crossed the lawn. He threw a few pebbles at Kie's window and waited for her to open. It took a moment, but then the girl looked outside.  
"JJ," she whisper-yelled and looked at him before throwing a glance over her shoulder, "what are you doing here?"  
"Can I come up?"  
Kiara nodded, and JJ used the downspout to get up to her room. He landed on the floor with a small thud, and Kie threw him a concerned look.  
"What's going on? I thought you were staying at Pope's?"  
"I was," JJ said and plopped down on Kie's bed, "but, as always, I fucked up, and Hayward sent me packing."  
"What did you do?"  
"Got stoned with Pope after specifically being told not to…" he explained, once again feeling ashamed and utterly stupid.  
Kiara pulled him into a hug when she saw the crestfallen look on his face. She let a hand run through his locks and then let go of him.  
"I wish I could offer you to stay here with me," she said sadly, "I miss you…"  
"Miss you too," JJ answered.  
He looked at Kiara, and, all of a sudden, the last of his façade cracked, and the tears started rolling down his cheeks. He bit his lip to keep from whimpering, and Kie put her arms around him again. He let her hold him tight and for once completely let his guard down.  
"It's my fault JB and Sarah are dead," he hiccupped and wiped his nose with the back of his hand.  
"Hey," Kie said in that caring, soothing voice, "JJ, that's not true, okay. If anyone's at fault it's the police. They were the ones chasing them into the storm."  
Her words made the knot in his stomach loosen a little and he took a deep breath. Feeling his shirt dampen, he realized that Kie was crying too and he pulled back to be able to cup her face.  
"I just want them back, JJ," Kiara sniveled as large tears rolled down her cheeks.  
The blond felt his throat tighten and he locked eyes with Kie.  
"Yeah, me too," he croaked.  
They both fell back on the bed, letting their fingers intertwine to keep a soothing connection. JJ closed his eyes and suddenly felt sleepy. A moment later, a soft, reggae-rock tune reached his ears. He didn't recognize the song and turned his head to look at Kiara.  
"Getting tired of Marley?" he asked with a small, crooked smile, and the girl shook her head.  
"Never," she said, "but there's nothing wrong with expanding your taste. It's How to fly with Sticky Fingers."  
"Never heard of them," JJ told her and closed his eyes again, "but it's really relaxing right now."

"What the hell is going on, Kiara?"  
Mr. Carrera's angry voice prompted JJ to almost fall of the bed, his heart instantly jumping to his throat.  
"Dad," Kie exclaimed in a startled voice and quickly got to her feet, "JJ just really needed a place to stay and-"  
"And this is most definitely not the place. Get out! Now!"  
"I was just-" JJ tried and gritted his teeth when the tall man grabbed him none too gently by the scruff of the neck.  
"Dad," Kie shot heatedly, clearly not happy with him manhandling JJ, "let him go!".  
"Can it, missy, you're already grounded and not allowed to see him, and then I find him in your bed!"  
"No need to make it sound like I was trying to bone your daughter," JJ exclaimed with a huff.  
Unlike with Hayward, JJ didn't harbor particularly positive feelings for Mr. Carrera, and he let out an "ow" when the strong man tightened his grip around his neck.  
"Let him go," Kie yelled again, following them down the stairs.  
Kiara's father didn't let go of JJ until he could shove him forcefully out the front door. He pushed him forward and wagged a finger in his face when JJ turned around.  
"If I catch you in here again, I'll call the cops. Are we clear?"  
Angry and hurt as he was, JJ saluted the man mockingly.  
"Yes, sir," he spat and sent Kie a miserable look.  
Kiara's eyes were filled with tears, and she pointed to her phone, letting JJ know to text her later.

Once again, JJ found himself walking the streets, lost and empty. This time he felt angry as well, though, and, stewing in his own negative feelings, he didn't notice the car that passed him. His fists were balled up, his teeth gritted and even his steps were angry and loud. JJ kicked a rock on the sidewalk, and too late he realized that someone was following him. Just as he turned around, an old, wooden baseball bat hit him on the side of his head, and he crumbled to the ground. He managed to focus his eyes on his attacker for a second, and JJ cursed to himself. Barry! Then everything faded, and JJ felt himself being swallowed by a deep, black darkness…


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Barry is not the most gentle guy so expect some pretty violent behavior now that he has gotten his hands on JJ and has him captured in a remote location. This means possible trigger warnings in this and the coming chapters.  
> Have fun reading 😊

When he finally came to, JJ found himself hogtied in the trunk of Barry's car. A sense of complete dread immediately started pulsing trough him, sending adrenaline to every cell in his body to ready the fight or flight-impulse. Right now, he couldn't do either though. The car was still driving God knew where, every pothole in the road making JJ bump around uncomfortably in the tight space. He swore internally when the car suddenly took a sharp right turn, making the big bump on his head slam into the side of the trunk. JJ tried to free his hands, but had to admit that Barry had done one hell of a job with the duct tape.  
Then the breaks shrieked, and the car came to a skidding halt. He heard the door slam, and JJ froze in his painful position. Outside, he could now hear footsteps approaching, and then Barry popped the trunk to look down at his prey.  
"Well, well, you're awake, bitch," Barry drawled, and JJ shot daggers at his captor.

It had to be close to midnight, JJ thought to himself as Barry pulled him from the trunk. The cicadas were still chirping like crazy, and the breeze felt warm against his skin when he landed with a thud on the dirt. Barry pulled out a knife, and JJ flinched. He held his breath and felt his muscles tense, but Barry just cut the duct tape tying JJ's legs together.  
"Get up," Barry ordered and grabbed JJ harshly by one of his biceps.  
He yanked at the teen, and JJ got to his feet with a huff. Barry pulled him up a few steps onto the porch of an old house. The dark haired, young man kicked the door open and pushed JJ inside. The house had to be situated on the Cut with its small size and old kitchen, JJ mused to himself, and he made a mental note to take in as many details as possible to pass on once Barry hopefully slipped up at some point and left him alone.

A few moments later, JJ found himself being shoved down on a chair, and his bound arms hit the wooden back painfully. JJ threw his kidnapper a dirty look, and with an eyebrow raise Barry pushed him forward on the chair so he could guide JJ's arms up and over the back, locking him in place.  
"Mm!" JJ growled angrily at the burning sensation in his shoulder joints.  
Barry looked at him again and sent him one of his maniacal smiles, showing off the gold tooth. After duct taping each of JJ's legs to the chair, he raised a hand and ripped the tape off the teen's mouth in one fluid motion.  
"Arh," the blond winced and drew his brows together.

For as long as he could remember, JJ had used his smart mouth as a defense mechanism, but right now he was sure that wouldn't get him anything but a beating. He knew that if Barry provoked him, he wouldn't be able to stay quiet, though. Keeping his mouth shut wasn't exactly one of his specialties!  
"Where's my money?" Barry asked JJ and folded his arms.  
"I don't have it anymore," JJ answered and spat on the floor.  
Barry did not look surprised. He picked his teeth with one of his nails and sent the blond an almost bored look.  
"Well, you owe me 25k, boy. I'll only ask you one more time. Where's my money?"  
"I'll answer one more time, then. I don't fucking have it!"  
A vicious backhand caught JJ on the side of his face, and he felt his cheek burn.  
"Well, if you've been stupid enough to spend it all, I'll just have to get my money's worth another way," Barry drawled menacingly.  
His words did nothing to calm JJ down, but they weren't exactly surprising given the circumstances. JJ swallowed hard and tried slowing down his breathing to get his galloping heart under control.

Barry pulled up a chair and sat down in front of JJ. He twirled the knife between his fingers and glared at the boy through slightly squinted eyes.  
"Where'd you get that nugget of gold?"  
Flashing images of their insane trip to the Cain residence came and went, and JJ bit his lip. Thinking of his friends made his eyes glisten with tears, and he tried pushing the grief and sadness as far away as it would go. Breaking down in front of Barry would only provide him with useful ammunition for his twisted game.  
"The gold is gone," JJ answered then, sounding even more bitter than he felt.  
"Convenient, huh!"  
Barry tilted his head a bit and looked like he tried to figure out if the boy was telling the truth or not.  
"Let's see if a little pain can jog your memory!"

JJ automatically straightened up in the chair and clenched his jaw at those words. Barry was totally unpredictable, and although JJ hadn't originally taken him for much else than a simple basehead, his determination to get back his money, and his willingness to use violence to get it, were ominous. Right now, JJ wished that John B. or Pope had forced him to put the money back, but he knew how unapproachable he had been that day and that he would probably have knocked either of them on their ass if they had actually tried to take the cash from him.

Before any more thoughts could run through his head, a sharp blow hit him right on the cheekbone, and JJ huffed as his head snapped to the side. He could feel the buzzing sensation on the entire left side of his face, and he knew that a black eye would form quickly.  
"You can hit me all you like," JJ spat angrily, "the gold will still be gone, you idiot!"  
"We'll see about that," Barry said and followed up with a hard punch to the chest.  
Being positioned the way he was, JJ's solar plexus was both unprotected and exposed, and the hard fist connected squarely with the sensitive area. JJ felt the air leave his lungs, and he struggled to pull in another breath. He was slumped over on the chair, trying to force himself back up, and continuously heaved for air. Barry had taken a step back and was watching him calmly.  
"Did that hurt? Poor baby…"  
He added the last words in a mocking voice, and JJ had to bite his tongue to keep from letting a bomb of profanities drop on the dark haired guy. Yes, it freaking hurt, what the hell did he imagine!  
Barry seemed almost annoyed that JJ didn't scream or yell at him. During the next few minutes, he punched the teen several times, but didn't succeed at getting JJ to talk. After a nasty blow to his nose, Barry stepped back again and shook his hand a bit. Then he cracked his knuckles and looked like he was going to hit JJ again, and the boy sucked in a breath.  
"I don't have your money, I don't know where the gold is, and I can't get it for you…" JJ croaked after spitting a large blob of blood onto the dirty floor. His voice was laced with impatience and anger and, once again, he sent the young man in front of him a nasty glare.  
"Just let me fucking go, Barry!"  
"Not a chance, JJ, I'm not done having fun yet. When I've had my pound of flesh then maybe…"  
JJ sighed audibly and tensed his muscles. All of a sudden, Barry had moved behind JJ, and the blond felt his heart jump to his throat. No matter how uncomfortable he was and how much Barry's punches hurt, having him in plain sight was a million times better than him moving around behind you, not knowing what the hell he would do next.  
A second later, Barry's hand caught JJ by the hair and pulled him back, making him grit his teeth.  
"Let's try something else, shall we?"  
JJ shook his head slightly in the tight grip, panic quickly spreading inside. Then Barry released his hair, and right after, the teen felt the cold, pointy knife resting against one of his palms. Chills traveled down JJ's spine, and he sucked in a breath. Shit!  
"Eeny, meeny, miny, moe," Barry counted and moved the knife from finger to finger.  
He continued the rhyme, and when he finally reached "it", Barry let the knife point sink in under the nail of the unlucky finger.  
"AARGH," JJ yelled and shut his eyes firmly, "fuck you, you fucking psycho!"  
It was a disgusting form of prickly, burning pain, and a few tears slipped down his warm cheeks. Hearing his outburst, Barry grabbed JJ by his hair again and shook his head harshly from side to side a few times.  
"Such a foul mouth. Maybe I should cut out your tongue instead, huh?"  
JJ's eyes grew wide. Though he very much doubted that Barry would ever do that exact thing, the uncertainty was a form of torture all in its own right.  
"No," he croaked.  
"No?" Barry echoed.  
He pulled the knife out from the first finger and resumed his counting. This time one of JJ's pinkies turned out to be "it", and a wave of nausea rolled through his stomach when the knife sank in.  
"OW, SHIIIT!"

Finally, when JJ had four blood dripping finger tips, Barry seemed to grow tired of his game. He put the knife down on the messy coffee table and squatted down to JJ's eye level.  
"It's been a long day," he said and grabbed his phone from his pocket, "time for some shut-eye."  
JJ squinted and felt a gleam of hope and relief. Some hours without pain would be nice, and, if Barry actually fell asleep, he could focus his energy on getting out of this God forsaken shit-hole! However, that plan went down the drain when Barry punched in a number on his phone. It rang a few times, but then someone picked up at the other end of the line. Barry looked straight at JJ when he answered.  
"Yo, Country Club. I got a job for you!"


	4. Chapter 4

Kie was tossing and turning in her bed. It was way past midnight, but despite being tired, she couldn't sleep at all. The way her father had thrown JJ out of the house still haunted her, and Kiara kept checking her phone every few minutes. The hurt look in JJ's eyes when he had sent her dad that sarcastic salute had practically broken her heart, and all she wanted was to know that he was alright. She couldn't imagine him going back to his own house to face his asshat of a father, and now that both Hayward and her own family had thrown him out, Kie didn't know where JJ would spend the night.  
She had called him, left messages and sent him texts, but JJ hadn't responded at all, and Kiara wasn't handling the uncertainty very well. Suddenly, her phone buzzed, and Kie's heart jumped to her throat. She thrust her hand out and almost knocked over the nightstand to get it. It was a text from Pope. He hadn't been able to reach JJ for the last couple of hours either and wanted to know if Kie had heard anything from their friend.  
After replying, she blew out a frustrated breath and fell back on the pillow. Even though JJ could be unpredictable at times, Kie was certain that he had given her a tiny, affirmative nod when she tried telling him to contact her. And now that he hadn't, she couldn't stop thinking about his whereabouts. Was he crashing at a classmate's or getting high down by the pier with Jorge? Or was he alone somewhere, letting his negative thoughts consume him? At midsummer's, Kiara had told Pope that JJ had the survival instincts of a cockroach. She had always thought of him as someone who could get through anything, but after seeing him in that hot tub, so lost and broken, she wasn't so sure. Not anymore.  
After staring into the dark for a while, Kie grabbed her phone again. She sent Pope another text and waited for him to get back to her. It only took a second before the phone buzzed. Reading his reply, Kiara finally felt like she could go to sleep. Despite both of them being grounded, tomorrow morning they would go search for JJ!

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JJ had been slipping in and out of sleep for a few hours when the door suddenly creaked on its hinges. He immediately opened his eyes and felt his heart drop, knowing full well who Barry had called earlier. It was still dark, but through the window JJ could sense the sky growing a few shades lighter. Morning was slowly approaching.  
The dark haired, young man stretched before he got up from his relaxed position on the old, mangy couch and almost knocked over the large bong when he passed it.  
"Finally," Barry said and ran a hand through his hair.  
"Sorry," Rafe answered and took a step further into the room, dropping a large bag on the floor, "it took a while to find this place."  
He looked around, and his eyes grew wide when he saw just who it was that Barry had tied to a chair in the middle of the decaying house. The tall teen went to stand in front of JJ. He sent the boy an angry glare and crossed his arms.  
"Well hello, JJ," Rafe said menacingly and prodded the boy's sore, black eye harshly.  
"Fuck off, Rafe," came the answer, and JJ clenched his jaw as he pulled his head back.  
Barry looked at his now-accomplice.  
"I've already had a little chat with him, and it seems he's spent my money. All 25k!"  
"Stupid move," Rafe barked, and Barry nodded.  
He turned his head towards JJ.  
"Rafe here knows what happens if you owe me money. And it ain't pleasant. Ain't that right, Cameron?"  
Rafe's cheeks flushed a little, and he subconsciously rubbed his left wrist with an uncomfortable look on his face. JJ had no comeback to that and sucked in his bottom lip instead.

Barry gave Rafe's arm a quick pull to get him to follow him, and the two went into one of the other rooms in the house where Barry pushed the door closed with his foot.  
As soon as they were out of earshot, JJ started tugging at the duct tape. He tried pulling his hands as far away from each other as they would go, but no matter how hard he worked at it the tape didn't budge an inch. He cussed internally and instead shifted his focus to his legs, attempting to kick out his feet to loosen the duct tape around his calves. Absolutely nothing happened, and JJ sighed to himself. If Barry and Rafe didn't mess up at some point, he was probably going to die in this freaking shithole, he thought to himself.

JJ turned his head when the door opened again. Both of the young men entered the living room, and while Rafe looked both determined and livid, Barry seemed eerily relaxed and just winked at JJ as he went over to him. He squatted down and patted JJ hard on the cheek.  
"I just told Rafe whose boat your boy, John B, used when he was stupid enough to bring Sarah freaking Cameron into a tropical storm and get the both of them killed… And he ain't happy!"  
JJ swallowed hard before gritting his teeth. He was almost afraid a few of them would break since he was biting down so hard.  
"What the fuck would you know about that, you asshole?"  
Barry sent him a sly smile.  
"Your dad was all kinds of pissed when he came to buy a few days ago. Telling everyone who'd listen about his idiot son who had stolen his Phantom and how he'd whip your ass when he got his hands on you!"  
JJ's cheeks turned red. He felt absolutely certain that Barry was telling the truth. Then a wild rage blossomed within him and, before he could stop himself, he spat Barry straight in the face.  
The young man froze on the spot before slowly drying his cheek and nose. Then he squinted his eyes.  
"You shouldn't have done that!" he ground out and grabbed the knife from the coffee table. JJ's blood already adorned the blade, and the teen felt his pulse quicken significantly now that he was convinced that pain was imminent again.  
"Should we do another round of eeny, meeny, miny, moe?" Barry asked tauntingly, and JJ shook his head.  
"Hmm," he said then and glanced back at Rafe who was moving the big, black bag he had brought with him.  
"I think, maybe, I should teach you what used to happen to thieves."  
Before JJ could prepare himself for whatever Barry had in store for him, the dark haired guy grabbed him by one of his ears and pinched it as hard as he could.  
"Mmph," JJ grunted.  
Barry's grip had almost immediately turned the ear a bright red, and the teen squinted his eyes at the pain. The blade glinted in the light when Barry lifted the knife, and, as he moved it closer and closer, JJ held his breath.

When Barry let the knife bite into the flesh by his earlobe, JJ went rigid for a moment, every muscle in his body tensing. He could feel the warm blood running down his neck, and he had to take a deep breath to steady himself. But then Barry pulled the knife upwards, making the cut deeper, and JJ couldn't keep quiet any longer.  
"Aarhow!" he roared and instinctively pulled his head away from the knife.  
His movement made Barry's grip on his ear even harder, and JJ forced himself to keep his head still.  
"OW, FUUUCK!" he yelled again, feeling unwanted tears run down his face.  
"It's too soon to cry," Barry goaded and continued slicing slowly upwards, "just wait till we get to the cartilage!"  
His words made JJ nauseas, and when Rafe turned around he looked a lot paler than usual.  
"Barry," Rafe mumbled and sent him an almost scared look, "dude, that's-"  
Rafe didn't get to finish his sentence. Out of the blue, JJ felt his stomach do a flip and all he had eaten that day started making its way up. Then he opened his mouth and threw up. The puke hit Barry's shorts and boots, and he immediately pulled back.  
"Fucking hell!" he roared, dropping the bloody knife on the floor.  
He balled up his fist and punched JJ hard in the face. The teen groaned from pain and nausea, and he sucked in a deep breath when Barry quickly stepped away from him.  
"You deal with this shit!" Barry ordered and pointed at Rafe before hurrying out the front door, "I gotta get some clean clothes."

JJ spat on the floor to get the rest of the puke out of his mouth, and he sent Rafe a glance, tears glistening in his eyes.  
"I need some water!"  
Rafe raised his brows at JJ and then grabbed a bottle of water from the coffee table. He unscrewed the cap, but instead of helping JJ to a drink he gave the bottle a hard squeeze, making the water splash into JJ's face. He spluttered angrily and blinked his eyes to get the water out. The deep cut by his ear stung as the water made it into the wound, and JJ sent Rafe a deadly glare.  
"You're such a fucking asshole!"  
Without answering, Rafe went behind JJ. He grabbed the edges of the chair, and with a few powerful yanks the tall teen moved JJ and the chair a few feet away from the puddle of sick and blood spatter. The wooden chair balanced on two feet for a second before falling back to the floor with a creaking thud, and JJ grunted when the hard movement pulled uncomfortably at the tape around his wrists and calves.  
Rafe moved to the front and poked JJ right in the forehead with a long finger.  
"Maybe I won't cut off your ears, but you shouldn't be too happy that Barry's gone! Now it's my turn!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait everyone! It's been a crazy week, and the next one will be as well. After that, everything should slow down a bit, so I'll hopefully be able to post more often again.   
> As always, a warning first: canon-typical graphic violence, language and certain people being a-holes. Have fun reading 😊

Pope quietly slipped out his window and upped his pace as soon as he was a few feet away from the house. Then he looked back over his shoulder, but nobody seemed to have noticed him leaving. The sun was rising, painting the skies in beautiful yellows and pinks, and the air was already warm, convincing Pope that it would be another hot and humid day.  
Pope yawned and scratched his neck as he walked quickly down the road. He hadn't gotten a whole lot of sleep last night, and all his thoughts were centered on JJ. He felt so bad that his dad had kicked him out, and though Hayward had promised his son that JJ could come by the house again some time in the future, guilt was still twirling in his stomach, making him uncomfortable.  
It wasn't that surprising that he hadn't been able to get ahold of JJ, but when Kiara had told him what had happened at her house, and that JJ hadn't texted her like he was supposed to, he could feel himself starting to worry. JJ had looked totally out of it when he left the Haywards' house, and Pope could only imagine how it must feel being kicked out of two places in one night. Most likely, JJ had been getting stoned somewhere down by the harbor, but Pope didn't like to think about him sleeping on the streets when both Barry and his own dad still had it out for him.  
"Pope," a voice suddenly called, and the teen turned his head.  
Kiara quickly made her way over to him, and the two hugged tightly. They hadn't seen each other since that horrible night, and Pope didn't really know whether to kiss Kie or not. So much had happened that it didn't feel right, at least not right now.  
"Have you heard from him?" Pope asked, and Kiara shook her head.  
"I can feel something bad has happened, Pope," Kie said and swallowed hard.  
The boy bit his lip, not quite knowing what to say to that.  
"I'm sure he'll be alright," he offered then, "you said it yourself. JJ has the survival instinct of a cockroach, right…"  
They looked at each other, both thinking of the broken, vulnerable boy they had seen that night in the disco-mode-hot-tub. Pope sighed deeply, feeling that his words suddenly seemed hollow, and Kie frustratedly ran a hand through her long hair.

They quickly agreed there was a good chance that JJ was sleeping off a high somewhere at the harbor, and within half an hour they had checked in all the usual spots. JJ was nowhere to be found, and while Pope felt the sense of guilt growing continuously in the pit of his stomach, Kie felt a knot of fear take over her insides.  
"Pope," she said, clearing her throat when her voice almost disappeared, "I think we have to go check at his house. What if he went home and his dad-"  
She trailed off, not wanting to think about what Luke would probably do to his son if he showed up at their house without an answer to where the Phantom was.  
"He could have-" she tried again.  
Pope grabbed her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. Then he nodded his head.  
"I have the keys for JB's van, let's go!"

Kiara and Pope drove in almost total silence, the bumpy road making them bounce slightly up and down in the seats. Both of their minds were spiraling in unpleasant directions, and Kie thought about how she would react if Luke had hurt JJ severely. Or, well, even more severely than last time!  
"What the hell?" Pope suddenly mumbled, and Kie turned her head to look at the car going in the other direction.  
"What?" she asked and stifled a yawn.  
"That was Barry. What the hell's he doing up and about at 6.30 in the morning?"  
Kie knitted her brow and bit her lip. From what she knew, Barry wasn't exactly the early bird type.  
"Turn the car around," she said determinedly, "we have to see where he's going."  
Pope easily followed her train of thought and pulled hard at the steering wheel, making the tires squeal as the old van started turning. Kicking Barry's ass the other day, and the fact that JJ had spent all the money he had stolen certainly provided the aggressive dealer with motive. That he would gladly hurt JJ without any reservations was nothing new, and Kie and Pope both feared the worst. They sent each other a hopeful glance while following the car at a safe distance. As long as Barry didn't notice them tailing him, he could potentially lead them straight to JJ. Unless they were wrong, and Luke had already beaten him half to death and left him to stew on his own afterwards…

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JJ blew out a heavy breath and felt another string of blood leave his mouth before landing on the grisly floor. The black eye that Barry had given him was pounding in tune with his pulse, and he could barely even see out of it anymore. Rafe had focused his first tirade of punches to that specific side of his face, and JJ felt his head spin. He was certain that both his nose and mouth were bleeding quite profusely, and on top of the swollen eye he could picture himself looking severely battered at the moment. The only good thing about all of that was that his dad would probably wait to punish him himself for at least a few days when he finally got home! If he made it out of here alive, that was.

Rafe rubbed his right hand for a bit, clearly feeling his knuckles grow sore from their repeated contact with JJ's cheekbone, nose and jaw. Instead of punching his and Barry's captive another time, he turned around and looked at the big bag on the couch. Then he walked the few steps over and unzipped it.  
On the chair, JJ closed his eyes. He tried ripping the duct tape off again even though his energy reserves were depleting rapidly. He clenched his teeth and tensed the muscles in his wrists and arms, but nothing happened this time either. JJ cursed under his breath and raised his gaze when he heard Rafe turn around. He sighed but was not surprised to see what Rafe was twirling in his hands.  
"Let's see if I can make this a hole in one," the tall teen taunted.  
He positioned himself and cleared his throat a little while adjusting the angle. Then he pulled back and swung. The clubhead hit JJ straight in the ribs, and an intense feeling of pain blossomed immediately after.  
"Hhnng!" JJ groaned and started coughing.  
Rafe squinted and poked JJ in the chest with the handle of the golf club.  
"Feeling sorry for yourself, are you?"  
JJ didn't answer. He was still working to focus his breathing, and he was certain that Rafe's swing had broken at least one of his ribs. Every time he pulled in a breath it felt like a knife pierced his insides, and JJ decided to settle for small shallow breaths to minimize the pain.  
"My sister is gone because of you!" Rafe spat with a dangerous gleam in his eyes and prodded the blond with the club again.  
JJ couldn't help but squirm a little in the seat as an attempt to get away from the pain. Despite Kie's words from last night, he still felt guilty for providing Sarah and John B with their getaway boat, but he would never show Rafe that he agreed with him. Instead he squinted his eyes a little and looked angrily at his tormentor.  
"Sarah is gone because you and your dad drove her and John B outta here, you absolute asshole! You killed Peterkin and blamed it on JB, making every cop on the island search for him!"  
Rafe shook his head a little and pursed his lips.  
"I can't figure out if you're brave or just really dumb to run your mouth like that…"  
"Well, I know for a fact that you're a freakin' coward. You need your crew with you, or me to be tied to a fucking chair to have the guts to kick my ass. Let me go and fight me one on one!"  
Rafe barked out a laugh at that before grabbing JJ by his hair and pulling his head back a little.  
"How stupid do you think I am?"  
JJ looked defiantly at Rafe and raised one of his brows.  
"Do you actually want me to answer that? Because, I mean, you are really, really, CATASTROPHICALLY-"  
Rafe clenched his jaw. The next second, JJ's head snapped to the side when he was backhanded harshly, the smack cutting him off mid-sentence. JJ shook his head a few times and focused his eyes to look up at Rafe again.  
"You're such a pussy!" he spat and felt his cheek burn from the slap.  
He could sense Rafe grow more and more frustrated, and JJ hoped that the other boy would eventually slip up if he continued annoying him.  
The tall teen snarled at JJ's words and let his fist fly. It connected squarely with his chin, and JJ huffed. He was just about to let out another snide remark when Rafe grabbed the duct tape off the table. Then he pulled off a large piece and slapped it over JJ's slightly open mouth.  
"There," he said tauntingly, "problem solved."

Rafe grabbed the golf club again and circled JJ menacingly. He let the clubhead hit the back of the chair just above JJ's hands, then the side of the chair below his thigh, and JJ could feel his heart beat desperately in his chest.  
Rafe stopped when he was standing in front of the blond again, this time placing the club right between his legs. He pushed the golf club further forward, letting it press evilly against JJ's crotch, and JJ automatically straightened up as much as possible in the chair. He gritted his teeth and squinted his eyes at the pain, afraid of what Rafe would do next.  
After a moment, the older boy removed the club from between his legs, and JJ visibly relaxed a little. His relief was short-lived though, as Rafe lifted the club and then let it whistle through the air.  
"You killed my sister!" the tall teen roared angrily, and JJ had to push his feelings away when the guilt he had been carrying for almost a week quickly spread in his stomach again.  
The clubhead hit JJ right on his ankle, and even through his boot the pain felt like a small explosion of fire, working its way up his leg and spreading to the rest of his body.  
"Aaarh!" he yelped loudly through the tape and felt a few tears run down his cheeks.  
He wasn't sure that the bone was broken, but the pain was definitely intense and rolled through him in unpleasant, pulsing waves.  
Rafe spat on the floor in front of JJ and looked down at the boy. Then he placed the golf club up against the coffee table before patting JJ on the cheek.  
"Time for a break," he announced before plopping down on the couch.  
Rafe pulled out a tiny bag of white powder and quickly laid out a few lines on the table. Then he bent forward and snorted the coke. He wiped a finger across his nose, drying off any excess blow, and then rubbed his finger against his gums.  
"Looking forward to round two?" he asked spitefully, and JJ clenched his fists behind his back.  
His entire body was buzzing, most of it from pain, and JJ felt his vision grow blurry. No, he was definitely not looking forward to a second round!

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"Where the hell are we going?" Kie shot and looked out the window.  
They had been driving for a while, deeper and deeper into the woods, and neither her nor Pope knew precisely where they were.  
Pope had to keep a good distance so Barry wouldn't notice them, but when they made it around the trees the car appeared to have vanished.  
"Shit!" Pope growled and felt the panic grow inside.  
Luckily, Barry popped up in view again, and Pope hurried after him. Then the van gave a sad sniffle and started shaking slightly before coming to a complete stop.  
"Fuck!" Kie exclaimed and opened the car door.  
They both scrambled out of John B's van and started running. They couldn't afford to lose their trail. Not now!

Thankfully it didn't take them long to get back on track. At the same time, they spotted Barry's car. It was parked outside an old, decrepit house, and Pope and Kiara quickly crept closer.  
"Isn't that Rafe's bike?" Kie asked in a low voice, and Pope nodded.  
His heart was beating fast, and he grabbed Kiara's hand when she headed towards the porch.  
"It's too risky," he whispered, "we gotta sneak around to the side."  
Kie nodded, and the two teens ran quietly around the building. The window was placed too high up, and Pope squatted down so Kiara could stand on him to reach.  
She carefully grabbed the ledge and looked inside. What she saw made her skin crawl.  
"JJ!" she whispered, her voice shaking and desperate.  
"He's there?" Pope exclaimed and felt his pulse quickening even more.  
She nodded and felt tears rising in her eyes.  
"We gotta get him out, Pope. If we don't, I think they're gonna kill him!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, guys, work has been absolutely crazy! I hope you're still out there with me, and that you'll enjoy this chapter.  
> All previous warnings still apply; violence, swearing and hurt!JJ. Have fun reading 😊

Kie flinched when she saw Barry kick at the chair, barely avoiding JJ’s knee. The force knocked the chair back on two legs, and after balancing for a few seconds, it toppled all the way backwards, making JJ land on top of his bound hands. Kiara could hear him cry out in pain even with a strip of duct tape over his mouth. She held her breath and jumped down to the ground.  
“It’s bad, Pope. We need to call the cops!”  
Kiara pulled out her phone, but immediately let out a frustrated string of curses.   
“Fuckin’ battery’s dead,” she huffed and looked at Pope.  
He whipped out his own phone.   
“The reception’s totally gone out here,” he exclaimed, and ran a hand through his short hair.   
Pope bit his lip, his brain working overtime to try and come up with a useful plan. He waved Kie over to the wall and climbed up to stand on her thighs so he was able to look inside. When he jumped down again, he felt even more unsure of what they could actually do by themselves.   
“They have weapons,” he whispered hoarsely and looked at Kiara with wide eyes, “guns, knives, golf clubs! We have to get ahold of the cops, Kie, there’s no way we can do this on our own!”   
Kiara felt like kicking the side of the building, and she subconsciously bit one of her nails. This was turning out to be an absolute shitshow. An even worse one than she could have imagined despite Barry and Rafe both being involved!  
“We can’t take too long to come up with a plan, Pope,” Kie said in a low voice.   
She wouldn’t usually describe herself as particularly sensitive, but thinking of JJ just now made her feel lightheaded and nauseas. There had been so much blood in there. On the floor, on Rafe’s hands, and of course all over JJ. He had practically been covered in it, and Kie tried pushing the haunting image out of her head.   
Pope chewed on his tongue for a few seconds.   
“We need to get to a place with reception,” he said as he held up his phone.  
“If I follow the road back, it shouldn’t take all that long, but-“   
“It’s pretty much our only choice,” Kiara interjected with a serious look on her face, “you need to explain to Shoupe that he has to move his ass. And fast!”  
Pope nodded and looked at Kie.   
“I’ll see if I can’t bring the van to life to get there faster. You’re coming with me, right? I’m not comfortable with you staying close to those psychos!”   
Although Kiara understood what Pope was thinking about, she still shook her head no.   
“JJ’s already here alone, he’s been with those psychos for God knows how many hours, and I’m not gonna leave him again!”   
When she saw the look in Pope’s eyes, she gave a small sigh and grabbed the boy’s hand. Kiara bit her lip and squeezed Pope’s hand gently.   
“I’ll stay outside, I promise. I know I’m not strong enough to take on those two by myself, okay.”  
“Promise me you’ll stay out here no matter what happens inside.”   
Kiara swallowed hard. If Barry grabbed a gun and pointed it straight at her best friend, would she really be able to just look?! Pope squeezed her hand back and sent her a pleading look.   
“Promise!”   
“I promise,” she answered then and leaned in to give Pope a quick hug.   
He sent her one last, long look and then took off, running as fast as he could down the dusty path through the forest.   
Kiara almost jumped when she heard angry voices from inside the house, and she looked around for something to stand on that would allow her to reach the window. 

Barry looked down at JJ on the floor and raised a brow at him. He was certain that the boy was in a lot of pain with his hands and arms pinned uncomfortably under the chair. The teen’s jaw was clenched tightly, and Barry could see a handful of new bruises, blood trails and swollen places on his captive that had been left by Rafe while he had been gone himself.   
He extended a strong arm and grabbed the blond by the front of his shirt. Then he gave a violent pull and succeeded in hauling JJ and the chair up again. With an all too pleased expression on his face, Barry ripped the duct tape off JJ’s mouth. He rolled up the piece of tape and let it fall to the floor and took a small step back. JJ huffed and winced and sent both of his tormentors angry glares. Both of his wrists were pounding and thumping from the impact with the floor and the added weight that had landed on top of them. He carefully wiggled his fingers, relieved to find all of them responding. To his great surprise, he also found that he could wriggle his hands, the duct tape seemingly starting to give in, and JJ carefully began working his right hand up to free it from the tape. Then Barry grabbed him under the chin and forced his face up. JJ tried his best to pull out of the uncomfortable grip, but the older guy didn’t budge and sent the teen a condescending glare.   
“Judging from the new bruises and that tape I just ripped off, I guess you weren’t such a good boy while I was gone, were you, JJ?”   
JJ hardened his stare and felt nothing but hatred for the dark-haired, young man in front of him.   
“Fuck you, Barry!” he ground out through gritted teeth.   
On the couch, Rafe snickered slightly at the exchange of words. Then he got up and joined Barry in front of JJ, who silently kept working against the duct tape.   
“He got what was goddamn coming to him. Didn’t you, you fuckin’ lowlife!” Rafe growled and kicked JJ’s foot.   
Even though Rafe hadn’t put that much power behind the kick, JJ felt intense pain shooting through his ankle, and he pulled in a few, sharp breaths. In turn, those movements made the dagger that was his cracked rib stab piercingly at something inside. The pain was overwhelming, and JJ felt like he needed to throw up again.  
“Aarh!” he cried and couldn’t help the tears that slipped over the edge.   
Barry smirked at him and patted him mockingly on his head, making Rafe snicker again.   
“Aw, does it hurt?”   
The words hit JJ like a whiplash and for some reason made something inside of him snap.   
“LET ME FUCKIN’ GO!” JJ roared in a sudden fit of uncontrollable rage, his entire body screaming in pain, “LET ME FUCKIN’ GO!” 

All of his emotions were pounding inside his chest, an angry swirl of chaos, and even though his hand was nearly free from the duct tape, in that specific moment, JJ was certain that he would never be found. That Barry and Rafe would keep beating him, keep torturing him and keep belittling him until he finally gave in and just died.   
And would that really be so bad? His dad wouldn’t miss him, that was for sure, and not having to suffer through any more of his beatings would be a gift. John B and Sarah were dead. Gone along with the boat he had provided them with. The gold would never be found. And Kie and Pope had each other. They might miss him a bit at first, but they’d get over it. Move on and in time make some cute babies, maybe even calling them John, Sarah and JJ. 

His thoughts both comforted and scared him. JJ was not usually one to give up, and to suddenly realize that all he wanted was to give in to the pain and hurt and fear was terrifying. He felt his throat tighten, and his eyes filled with more tears. 

Just as JJ was about to break down and let out the sobs he was holding back, he spotted something at the window. Initially he told himself that he was obviously mistaken. That it was just his mind starting to play tricks on him as some sort of weird coping mechanism in the middle of this nightmare. But then the figure moved, and he saw the long, dark curls sway again. Kie! It felt as if his heart stopped for a second, and then a wave of hope rolled through him. If Kiara was there so was Pope. And now that JB was gone, those two were the ones he trusted the most to bail him out of this mess! 

The feelings of despair and fear almost immediately shrunk in his chest, and the will to keep fighting back started growing again. JJ clenched his fists and felt his fingertips sting where Barry had stuck in the knife. Those two bastards had to pay for this. JJ had been through too much crap in his life for two bullies like Barry and Rafe to be the ones to break him!   
Kie and Pope were obviously figuring out how to handle this clusterfuck of a situation, and all JJ could think of to help was to keep both Barry and Rafe so focused on him that his friends could put their plan in motion without being found out.   
With a newfound sense of calm, JJ took a painful breath before looking up at the two older guys. He couldn’t wipe away the tears still shining on his cheeks, but his voice didn’t waver when he started talking.   
“Your parents must be so proud of you! Living out your twisted, sadist fantasy together in a rotting house in the woods…”   
Barry seemed completely unfazed by JJ’s words and just huffed a little, but Rafe pursed his lips and his eyes turned to slits. There was no doubt that he was the easiest to push over the edge, and knowing full well that Rafe’s exploding temper would mean even more pain, JJ continued egging him on. A moment later, his sarcastic onslaught earned him a punch in the face that made his nose bleed again, and JJ scrunched up his face in pain.

Kiara quickly jumped down from the old bucket and prayed that Barry hadn’t noticed her when he had turned around just seconds before. JJ had seen her for sure, and Kie hoped that just knowing someone was here for him could help JJ a little in there.   
“Where the hell are you, Pope,” Kie muttered to herself and turned to look in the direction Pope had disappeared.  
It hadn’t been more than ten or fifteen minutes, but time seemed to slow down horribly in situations like this, and Kiara felt more impatient than ever before in her life.   
Suddenly she could hear something approaching, but it couldn’t be Pope and Shoupe. Not yet. So who was it? Hopefully, Barry hadn’t called in some redneck cavalry to help, and Kiara felt certain that Rafe would never invite any of his Kook friends to this place.   
Then she spotted a black Range Rover slowly creeping closer, and she hurried around the corner so no one would be able to see her. Kie leaned her back against the cool wood with bated breath, and just then she realized that if Pope hadn’t been able to revive the engine, the van would still be parked at the side of the dirt road. If whoever was approaching was someone they knew, this would completely blow their cover! Her heart was pounding, and Kiara peeked around the corner to get a look at whoever had arrived. When the car door opened Kie’s eyes went wide. What the hell was he doing here!   
JJ felt his head spin and blood run down his chin. He sucked in some air and looked up when the door suddenly opened, hoping with all his heart that it was Kie and Pope. Both Barry and Rafe whirled around quickly, and Barry automatically grabbed for the gun on the coffee table. Before he could reach it, an angry, authoritative voice boomed through the house.   
“What the fuck is going on here?!”   
Ward strode in, an absolutely livid expression spreading on his face when he took in the scene.   
“Dad-“ Rafe croaked in a shocked voice.   
He almost seemed to shrink as his father glared at him, and Rafe raised his hands in a placating manner. Ward closed the gap between himself and the boys, and when he was close enough, he raised his hand and slapped Rafe so hard across the face that even Barry recoiled.   
“Ow,” Rafe huffed and swallowed hard while he took a step back.   
“You gotta be goddamn kidding me, Rafe!” Ward shot and looked like he contemplated whether to smack some more sense into his son or not.   
“H-how did you even know where I was?” Rafe asked and rubbed his cheek.   
“If your first question is how I could find you, you have some serious issues to work out, boy! You are straight up destroying your future here,” Ward continued and gestured towards JJ.   
“But dad-“  
Ward sent Rafe a hard look that had the boy shut his mouth and eye his shoes. Barry bit his tongue and looked at the head of the Cameron family warily. He knew that the man could be quite violent, and didn’t particularly fancy another beatdown from him.   
“Kidnapping people and torturing them isn’t exactly a way to move forward in life!” Ward scolded and poked his son in the chest.   
JJ snorted contemptuously on the chair and shook his head slightly.   
“Look who’s fuckin’ talking!”   
Up until that point, Ward hadn’t really given JJ any attention, but the words made his cheeks flush, and he turned towards the kid.   
“You’re in no position to threaten me, boy!” Ward spat, and JJ tensed his muscles, not knowing what to expect from the man.   
“Dad,” Rafe tried again and put a hand on Ward’s shoulder to get his attention, “he’s the one who got the boat for John B and Sarah…” 

Outside, Kiara was losing her mind. She had heard Ward slapping the bejesus out of one of the boys and a whole lot of angry yelling, but she didn’t dare look through the window in case she was spotted. What the hell was going on in there? Did Ward know that she or Pope was here as well?  
The next second, the door was kicked open from inside, and Ward was the first one out. JJ seemed to have been knocked unconscious, and Ward was carrying him like a sack of potatoes over his shoulder. Rafe scrambled out next and quickly opened one of the car doors, so Ward could load JJ inside the Range Rover. Once the door was securely closed again, Ward looked sternly at Rafe.   
“Grab your bike and ride it straight home. No detours. Are we clear?”   
Rafe hesitated a little and flinched when his dad raised his hand to point at him.   
“Are we clear?!”   
“Yes, sir,” Rafe confirmed quickly and gave a small nod, “but dad, how did you know where I was?”   
Ward rolled his eyes.   
“After all the shit you’ve been pulling lately, I’ve made sure how to track you, Rafe. Obviously, that was a good idea! Now, go.”   
Rafe put on his helmet and started the bike. When he was gone, Ward turned around and entered the house again; most likely to pack up all of Rafe’s things and make sure there was nothing left to tie his son to this crime scene.   
Now feeling certain that Pope had been able to move the van, Kiara immediately ran to the car and opened the door quietly. JJ was lying on his side on the back seat, knocked out and every part of him covered in blood and bruises, and Kie sucked in a shocked breath. He looked even worse than she had feared. She gently caressed his cheek and then ran her hand through his matted hair.   
Kiara’s heart jumped to her throat when she suddenly heard loud yelling and commotion from inside the house, and she quickly tried working through potential outcomes of the situation. If she hid in the car, she would know just where Ward took JJ, but she wouldn’t be able to tell anyone because of the damn dead phone battery. If she stayed behind, she couldn’t know where JJ would end up, but she’d be able to tell Shoupe that Ward had JJ so he could launch a search for them.   
Despite hating the thought of leaving Ward alone with JJ, Kiara concluded that actually getting the police to search for JJ and Ward was the best chance of success. She let her fingers run through JJ’s blond hair one last time and then hurried to the back of the house. A few minutes later she could hear the Range Rover’s engine turning on and going back the way it came. 

Kiara realized that Barry still had to be inside the house, and with her heart pounding in her chest she jumped on the old, metal bucket and peeked inside.   
Barry was sitting on the couch, looking somewhat disheveled. His nose was bleeding, and Kie wondered exactly what Ward had threatened him with to make him look this shaken. After a while, the dark-haired young man got up from the couch and grabbed his gun and knife before leaving the room.   
Hearing the engine rev made Kiara exhale forcefully, and, all of a sudden, she could feel all the adrenaline wear off. She slid down to the ground and rested her head against the side of the building as Barry’s car got further and further away. Tears gathered in her eyes, and she sniffled when the first drops rolled down her cheeks. JJ had looked a complete mess, and even though Barry and Rafe couldn’t hurt him anymore right now, Kiara couldn’t help but think that being alone with Ward didn’t bode well for JJ’s immediate future…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any wishes as to whether Ward should lose his mind in the next chapter and beat up and torture JJ a little himself (anger because JJ brought the boat that got Sarah "killed") or if he should be more in control of his emotions and pick a less violent path? Comments are more than welcome :)


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone.   
> Sorry, I know it's been a while, but I've been vacationing at our cabin and been working on my own novel, so there hasn't been all that time to write on this. But here we are. Finally ;) This is the final chapter, and I hope you'll all enjoy it. I've had a lot of fun writing this story, and time will tell what I'll put the Pogues through next time.  
> A huge shoutout to SHTWSPNSH for lending me a second opinion about Ward in this chapter!  
> For the last time: warnings still stand (canon-typical violence and profanity lies within). Have fun reading :)

When he finally came to, JJ found himself being transported in a car unwillingly for the second time in less than 24 hours. His hands were tied again, but this time they had been secured in front of him. JJ wondered if that was maybe to relieve the pain in his ribs a little. The teen didn't consider Ward to be a compassionate man in the slightest, but he was definitely not dumb, and if Ward was handing JJ over to the cops with some bullshit explanation about what had really happened, the way he presented the kid could make a rather big difference.  
After what John B had roared into the radio on that awful night, both Shoupe and the SBI had had several talks with Ward Cameron, but as always, his money, connections and persuasiveness had kept him walking around a free man, and JJ wouldn't be surprised if he'd find a way to get Rafe off scot-free from this episode as well.

JJ inhaled sharply when the car made a turn, pressing him into the back of the seats and putting an uncomfortable amount of strain on his ribs.  
"Mmmph," he huffed and carefully rolled to his back to minimize the pain.  
"You're awake," Ward stated flatly and looked at JJ in the rearview mirror.  
"No shit… Where are you taking me?"  
Ward didn't answer, and JJ swallowed hard. He couldn't see any houses through the window, only trees, and he felt his heart sink. They were definitely not going in the direction of the center of town.  
"Let's just start with a little talk, JJ," Ward said, his voice deceptively calm.  
JJ figured it had to do with the Phantom and how he was responsible for supplying the boat that took Sarah to her death, and his pulse skyrocketed.  
"Mr. Cameron…" JJ tried, but didn't really know what he was going to say.  
The next second, the car stopped at the side of the road, and Ward turned halfway around to be able to look at the banged-up boy on the backseat. JJ scrambled to sit up and finally managed to find a somewhat comfortable position.  
"What?" JJ asked cautiously and looked at the man in front of him.  
"Don't you have that hearing soon? About the Wakesetter you ruined."  
JJ sucked his teeth for a moment and squinted a little.  
"Yeah," he mumbled, "it's in a few days."  
He had almost forgotten about that. Somehow it felt weird that normal life just continued despite everything that had happened to him and his friends. Ward sent him a small, sly smile.  
"And there was something about restitution as I recall. 25 or 30 thousand, right?"  
JJ nodded silently in response, suddenly quite sure of where the man was going with this.  
"Without offending anyone, I'm pretty sure I can say that you don't have that kind of money, kid. But I do. If you're willing to forget what my son's done to you, I'll pay for the restitution."  
JJ swallowed hard. A small part of his brain told him to immediately take the offer. He had no idea how to get the money otherwise, and, as he had just thought about when he woke up, Rafe was probably bound to make it out of this shitshow with nothing more than a slap on the wrist. But then he thought of all the pain he had been through over these past hours, of all the crap Barry and Rafe had done to him, and about how he needed those two to pay for this for him to be able to move on. And besides, there were bound to be unpleasant ramifications if he took Ward's blood money anyway, right.  
"So, what do you say, JJ?"  
"You can take your money and stick it so far up your ass that you can taste it, you asshole. I'm never taking anything from you!"  
Ward huffed, and a sour expression spread on his face. He had hoped that the obviously poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks would gladly accept a wad of cash. Instead, that ungrateful brat had mockingly dismissed him. The anger, grief, and hurt that had been lurking inside Ward for the past days clawed its way to the surface, and the gleam in his eyes suddenly changed.  
"Let's see if I can change your mind, boy," he slithered threateningly and turned the key, making the engine roar.

Ward clenched his jaw and quickly started driving through the forested area again. His logic was fighting his emotions, trying to suppress the need and want to harm. But the emotions were strong and succeeded in drowning out the voice of reason.  
Soon after, the car made one last turn before Ward turned off the engine again. The man slammed the door after him and quickly made it to JJ's side of the car.

JJ groaned, and tears rose in his eyes from the pain when Ward pulled him backwards out of the car. His entire body felt like it had been beaten half to death, which wasn't really all that far from the truth, and his hurt ankle made it hard for the teen to support his own weight.  
He quickly looked around and swallowed hard when he realized what location Ward had taken him to. Remote, quiet and creepy as all hell, the Crain house brought back a lot of memories that JJ would rather not think about right now.  
The older man pulled JJ with him to a somewhat rickety-looking toolshed in the back of the overgrown garden. He gave the door a light kick, making it swing open with a loud and eerie creak, and then dragged his burden inside. JJ was dumped unceremoniously on the floor, and the teen scooted up against the wall. His newfound will to fight back was waning quickly, and a whirl of dark thoughts was growing in his mind. A new location meant that Pope and Kie had no idea where he was. And even though JJ was absolutely certain that they would try their best to find him, it could take forever for them to search in the right place.

Lost in his own train of thought, he hadn't noticed what Ward had been doing, and the blond flinched when the man suddenly grabbed him again. Mr. Cameron secured a length of chain around JJ's wrists and then pulled at the other end of it, hoisting JJ's arms uncomfortably up in the air. The movement pulled at his ribs, and JJ gritted his teeth.  
"Arh!" he hissed and shot daggers at Rafe's father.  
Ward sighed loudly and crossed his arms while looking at JJ.  
"This shouldn't take that long," he claimed with a dark expression on his face.  
JJ didn't particularly like the sound of that. The words had an unpleasant finality to them, and nausea spread in his guts when the thought of maybe dying out here crossed JJ's mind.  
"Mr. Cameron," he said in a somewhat high-pitched voice, "please let me go."  
Ward snickered a little and ran a hand through his hair.  
"I wanna talk a little more first, JJ."  
The teen gave a sad nod with his head. It wasn't as if he had a lot of options to choose from here.  
"Rafe told me that you were the one to get that boat."  
JJ thought of just straight up lying, but he was sure that Ward would see right through him and so opted for keeping quiet for now.  
"The boat that cost my daughter her life!" the man continued.  
The veins on his neck protruded, giving off an aggressive vibe, and JJ sucked in a breath. He reflexively pulled at the chains when Ward took a step towards him, but found them to be safely secured, locking him in place with little room to do anything other than stand ramrod straight. The position in itself was causing him quite a lot of discomfort, and JJ groaned when Ward grabbed his chin and forced him to look up.  
"Tell me!" he demanded harshly. "Did you get the boat?"  
JJ's heart was beating fast, and he sent the man a helpless look.  
"Yeah," he mumbled, the guilt surfacing once again.  
Ward made a strange, guttural sound and then raised his hand. The hard slap echoed off the walls in the small building, and JJ felt the smack sting. Ward's hand had hit him on the same side as his almost completely closed black eye, and fiver fingers to the face in that state really hurt quite a lot more than it would have otherwise.  
"Ow," the teen huffed as his head snapped to the side, hitting one of his cuffed arms.  
"You're part of the reason my little girl's gone!" Ward let out.  
His voice cracked at the end of the sentence, revealing just how many emotions were running through the man, and JJ bit his lip. He really wanted to yell and scream at Ward that he was a big fucking reason for his daughter even wanting to leave in the first place, but his body was reaching its limit for how much pain it could take, and JJ really didn't want another smack in the face.  
"I'm sorry," he said instead, sounding quite sincere.  
Ward froze for a split second, surprised by JJ's words. Then he knitted his brows together, images of Sarah's life flashing for his inner eye, and he threw a sentence in JJ's face that made shivers run down the boy's spine. A sentence he had heard a million times throughout his life. Up until this point in time only by his own father.  
"Well, you're gonna be when I'm through with you!"

OBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBX

Kiara looked up when she finally heard a car approaching the old shack. She quickly wiped the tears away and tried calming down her breathing. She was sitting on the porch, hugging her knees, but got up when the cop car came to a halt in front of the house.  
"Kie," Pope called to her as soon as he exited the car, "what's going on. Where are they? Whats-"  
"Ward showed up," Kiara sniffled, wiping her nose with the back of her hand.  
At the car, Shoupe made his way out, readjusting his belt and clearing his throat when he saw the two teens hugging.  
"Ward Cameron?" he asked, when he heard what Kiara was saying.  
The girl nodded and approached the Sheriff.  
"Yes," she said, "Barry and Rafe had JJ in here."  
She pointed to the house behind her and wiped another round of small tears away with her hands.  
"He was covered in blood, and I saw both Barry and Rafe hitting and kicking him. They looked like they were gonna kill him. But Ward came and took JJ. He put him in his Range Rover and drove off."  
Her words came quickly and Kiara had to focus to not start crying again. Shoupe nodded and cleared his throat.  
"Okay," he said then in his southern drawl, "any ideas where Ward might have taken him?"  
Pope and Kie looked at each other. They felt certain that Ward wouldn't take JJ to Tanny Hill, but just where might he go?  
The two teens shook their heads, and Shoupe nodded at them.  
"Get in the car and wait," he said then and called in the assumed kidnapping on his police radio. Then he called for a team to come collect any physical evidence before entering the house to secure the crime scene.  
It didn't take that long for another cop car to arrive, and, soon after, Kie and Pope headed out of the woods with Shoupe. There had been no sightings of the black Range Rover yet, and Shoupe kept asking questions to make the teens come up with potential ideas about where to check for JJ.  
"Have you guys been to any remote places lately that Ward also knows? Any other old cabins you know about? Any places you weren't supposed to go, maybe?"  
His last words made Pope glance at Kie, and they looked at each other warily. A place they weren't supposed to have been. A remote place that Ward had found about and knew where was. A place that would be perfect to bring someone to make them scream, since nobody would be around to hear it!  
"Maybe check out the Crain house," Kiara said, sounding somewhat subdued.  
She didn't particularly want to elaborate, and it appeared that Shoupe accepted her idea without drilling further into it. At least for the moment.  
"Crain house it is then," the Sheriff stated and turned the car around.

OBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBX

Ward had quickly given up on punching JJ in the face. Almost every inch was already covered in some kind of bruise or cut, and hitting the kid had just made him feel ridiculous. JJ's arms, chest and legs were also bloody already, so after the first two jabs the man moved behind the teen instead.  
"What're you doing?" JJ asked suspiciously, trying to whirl around to see what the man was planning, but Ward just placed a hand on the back of his neck, violently forcing the kid back to his original position.  
"Eyes front," Ward ordered angrily and looked around the toolshed for something to use.  
His own anger and frustration were building, and the only thing he could think of at the moment to relief that was to hurt someone; in this case JJ. Ward grabbed an old piece of pipe and weighed it in his hand. He shook his head, realizing how insane it would be to punish the boy with that and let the metal fall to the floor with a clang. JJ tensed the muscles in his arms when he heard the sound and tried sneaking a peek over his shoulder. He furrowed his brow when he saw Ward at the corner of the shed, picking up a few feet of rubber hose, and quickly turned back around.  
Ward let the hose whistle through the air, examining it thoroughly, and moved in position.  
"Please," JJ exclaimed when he heard the implement whooshing through the air a few times right next to him, "don't!"  
But the man didn't hesitate even when the kid begged, and a moment later the first stripe branded JJ right across his lower back.

Having been tied to a chair for a handful of hours had obviously made hurting his back and rear impossible, but that seemed to be the exact places that Ward was going for now, and JJ yelped loudly when the next stroke hit him across the butt and the top of one of his thighs.  
"Aarhow!"  
Ward rolled his neck, feeling the anger and grief dissipate slowly out of his system with every whiplash. As twisted as it might be, it was cathartic to say the least, and Ward raised his arm again.  
"Sarah's gone because of you!" he yelled loudly, making the blond flinch.  
"Sorry," JJ cried right after the hose made its mark, hitting him across a shoulder blade and wrapping evilly around his side.  
"I'm sorry…"  
"I'll never see my little girl again!"  
The hose whistled through the air more times than JJ could count, he flinched after every smack had left a raised welt on his skin, and the pain was horrifyingly intense. That such a relatively innocent-looking thing could be this brutal seemed almost unreal, and JJ spat on the floor. Tears were streaming silently down his cheeks, his legs were shaking underneath him, and he felt close to fainting. Then the strength behind the strokes started diminishing, and JJ could suddenly hear that Ward sounded close to tears.  
"Son of a bitch," Ward huffed and lifted his arm for the last time.  
Then the hose cracked down, leaving one more throbbing mark on the boy, and JJ howled in pain.

And then everything suddenly seemed to happen all at once. A loud crash made both JJ and Ward look up in shock, and at the same time they spotted the large man in the doorway. The door had been kicked off its hinges and fell into the shed, landing on top of a handful of barrels and buckets of paint. On the way, the door knocked the chains free from the hook on the wall, finally releasing the firm hold on JJ's arms and they fell to his sides, practically making the teen tumble to the floor now that nothing was holding him upright. Then a voice thundered through the tiny space.  
"Police. Stand down!"  
Shoupe entered the shed with his gun in his hand and quickly ordered Ward to his knees and to put his hands behind his head. After a pair of handcuffs had been slapped on the oldest Cameron, Shoupe redirected his attention to the boy.  
"JJ," he said, trying to sound calming, "it's over now, okay, kid. We're getting you outta here. Come on."  
He carefully grabbed the boy and led him outside. They had only made it a few yards before both Pope and Kiara came sprinting across the lawn.  
"I told you two to stay in the damn car!" Shoupe shouted loudly and waved an arm in the direction of the cop car that was parked out front.  
Pope looked somewhat ashamed, but Kiara continued running and finally made it to JJ and the Sheriff where she took over the hold on her battered friend.  
"JJ," she said and instantly started crying, "JJ, how are you doing?"  
At first, he didn't say anything, but just held on to her waist with his right hand and couldn't really understand that this whole thing was finally over.  
"I'm so tired, Kie," he croaked then and felt his knees buckle.  
The next thing he knew, the world was tipping, his vision growing blurry, and then he was suddenly lying in the tall grass.

OBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBXOBX

A monotone beeping sound finally pulled JJ out of his sleep, and he rolled from his back to his side. The hospital bed was soft, and he had been given a rather hefty dose of painkillers when they came in, but now, awake, JJ felt his entire body ache again.  
"Aarh," he groaned as a stab of pain shot through his ribs, "shit!"  
"JJ?" a voice asked softly, and the teen opened his eyes.  
Both Kiara and Pope were sitting in his room, their faces tired and concerned.  
"Are you okay, man?" Pope asked in a gruff voice and moved to JJ's side along with Kie.  
"I've been better, you know," JJ said and tried for a small smile.  
Kiara shook her head.  
"Ward's been taken in, and I'm pretty sure that he can't weasel out of this one."  
"And Rafe and Barry won't either," Pope added and nodded his head, "Shoupe was pretty assertive."  
JJ nodded once and swallowed.  
"I'm thirsty," he said, and Kiara instantly passed him a small glass of juice.  
After downing it all, he tried moving to sit up, but found that it hurt too much. Pope squinted at him and Kiara grabbed his hand.  
"Just stay still, JJ," she said, sounding very mother-hen-like.  
"Well, everything fucking hurts no matter what I do!"  
JJ hissed as a small movement made the bruises across his rear and back throb uncomfortably, and he instinctively squinted his eyes.  
"Stupid fuckin' hose," he mumbled almost inaudibly, and Pope bit his lip.  
"Your dad was here earlier," he told JJ and scratched his head a little.  
The blond's eyes shot from one friend to the other.  
"What?" he asked, sounding scared, "what'd he say?"  
Kiara squeezed his hand.  
"He didn't say all that much," she answered truthfully.  
JJ didn't know whether to be disappointed or not, but he supposed that actually showing up at all was something when it came to his dad, and he bit the inside of his cheek.  
Then a sneeze ripped through him, and JJ let out an impressive string of curses just as a nurse entered the room to check on her young patient. She was a middle aged, no-nonsense woman, and she sent the boy on the bed a somewhat stern look when she heard his outburst.  
"You need to lie on your back to give your broken rib some rest, JJ," she ordered and raised a brow.  
JJ looked ready to argue, but Kiara gave his hand another squeeze, and the blond complied. His breath hitched when he moved to his back, once more making the welts on his butt press against the mattress.  
He was just about to let out a handful of new profanities when Pope's phone started ringing. Pope looked at the screen, but didn't recognize the number calling, a part of him wishing for the person on the other end of the line to be someone able to offer him a new interview.  
"Please take your phone to the hallway," the nurse said to Pope, making him blush slightly.  
After he left, she bustled around for a bit, checking JJ's IV and asking him if he wanted something to eat. He nodded, suddenly feeling his stomach growl and beg for food.  
"JJ," Kie said carefully when the nurse left, "you know that I'm here for you, right. Me and Pope both are."  
JJ nodded, feeling his throat tighten. He swallowed and looked at the girl next to him.  
"Hey, weren't you grounded?"  
She smiled a little at that.  
"Not anymore," she answered, "and I get to see both you and Pope again too."  
"Well," JJ said jokingly, "I guess this whole thing brought a little good then, huh. The Pogues back together again."  
Kiara sent JJ a sad smile and felt sorry for her friend when she could see him realizing what he had just said. They both cleared their throats, and JJ fought hard to suppress the tears that threatened to fall. Before any of them had a chance to say anything, Pope entered the room again. He looked completely out of it and sat down at the edge of the bed.  
"You look like you've seen a ghost," Kie stated, and Pope nodded.  
"I haven't, but I talked to one."  
"Did you smoke another one of my joints?" JJ asked, sending Pope a puzzled look.  
He shook his head and looked like he was working over what to say in his head before actually opening his mouth to let the words out.  
"That was JB," he said then, and both Kiara and JJ sent him an incredulous look.  
"Yeah," Pope continued, "he and Sarah are alive. They're in the Bahamas, and they found the gold!"  
"What the fuck?" JJ shot just as the strict nurse returned.  
"Language!" she barked, but her eyes looked forgiving enough, "I brought you some dinner, JJ. Take it slow, okay."  
He nodded and beckoned Pope to keep talking while he bit into an overcooked potato.  
"John B said that they'll be home just in time for your hearing. And that you'll be able to pay for the restitution!"  
It was almost too much to take in, and JJ let himself fall carefully back on the bed. Right now, he didn't care that the stitches by his ear were stinging, that his ankle was swollen to double the size, or that he wouldn't be able to sit comfortably for days. John B and Sarah were alive. They were coming home. And the Pogues really would be back together again. All of them!


End file.
